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So i feel somewhat obligated to piss off 2013 semi-formally in this tumbleweed ridden space of mine.

Often I, like many, like to stamp a year “the best”, “the worst” or something else absolute. Wrap it up in a bundle.

Not since I was burning through puberty, sexual partners and party drugs have I really had a definitively good or bad year.

They are, one after the other, relatively stable. Highlighted by a few actions – good, bad, indifferent but significant – that fell largely out of my control.

This year ends on a relaxed note: not that July 2013 would have you believe it possible.

My employer of 7 years – and a supporter of several causes and communities I feel strongly about (and am connected to) – was defunded by the state government. And because it was “liquidated”, there was no cash for pay outs. The federal government is picking up that tab… a good 6-8 months after the organisation went down (we’re all still waiting).

And because I was providing something other than health-promotion in my role there (The Quadfecta – is that a word? – of IT, graphic design, publications and social media) I did not find work in any of the agencies that ended up getting the pittance of funding that remained.

So i’ve been unemployed since mid-year, and am happily relaxed because of it. Broke, but there is relief on there horizon, regardless of employment prospects.

Had work continued – I don’t think I would’ve survived. (Actually, had work continued I had been pre-informed that my position was top of the chopping block for cost savings. Bureaucrats and their delusions of outsourcing.) So, all good.

The rest of 2013 was more about other people: finding some, losing others.

It was the year I took my years-old Twitter account and started using the platform. Something I am incredibly grateful for, having connected with older friends and IRC buddies, as well as found new people that I am happy to call friends.

And that’s it, really. As life totters forward the most dramatic or ‘extreme’ events don’t really register beyond their immediate impact. I’ve learnt to deal quickly, and shut down any long term pondering. That only ends up in misery, picking over a long dead cadaver that has nothing more to give.

I hope you’ve had a good year, or a good month – or even just a good few days. And even more so I hope 2014 excels beyond anything you might’ve imagined. On the good side of the line, of course.

But if it falls on the bad side, I hope you have the friends and the time to make of it what you can, and to keep moving forward.